A/N: I've double posted, so if you've come to this chapter without knowing what a pink pain potion is, go back and read chapter 29!

xXx

On the evening of Friday, 17th December, Bess found herself cursing and running around her dorm room frantically searching for another bottle of Sleakeazy's Hair Potion.

"Honestly, I could sue," she cried as she pulled various bottles, clothes, and books out of her trunk, searching for a bottle.

She currently looked ridiculous - she'd spent ten minutes applying liberal amounts of the potion to straighten half of her hair before she ran out.

Now, she had the option of either getting back in the shower and ruining all the progress she'd made, or finding more of the stuff. Since she'd already done a lot of her make-up, she wasn't ready to start again.

"Two drops will tame your hair, my arse!" She cried, sitting down next to her trunk and glaring in to the fire in front of her.

"Just go ask James for more!" Lily called from the bathroom, where she was curling her hair with her wand.

Bess frowned. "Why would he have some? His hair's always a mess."

"Please tell him that. Seriously though, he'll have a few bottles lying around, I'm sure," Lily called back, laughing.

Bess sighed. This was her last chance, as Lily couldn't use the potion due to the adverse effects to redheads, and none of the other girls had as curly hair as Bess, so didn't use the potion.

She nodded and jumped up, before tightening the belt of her silk robe and putting on her slippers. As she ran down the girls' stairs, she wondered what Sirius would think when he saw her, half her head a mass of curls, the other straight, dressed in a weird Muggle robe, fluffy puppy slippers, and only half a face of make up on.

He'll just have to deal with it, she thought as she wrenched open the boys' dormitory stairs door and ran up, taking two steps at a time before knocking multiple times on the sixth year boys' door.

"Merlin, keep your hair-" James began as he opened the door, before cutting off and laughing in her face. He doubled over and she pursed her lips, glaring at him.

"Lily said you'd have more Sleakeazy's. Can I steal a bottle?"

"Oh my god! Honestly, I'll just give you one!" He said, still laughing, and beckoning her inside as he walked to his trunk.

"Please shut up, I know, okay?" Bess said as she stepped inside and closed the door.

"Love?" Sirius asked as he walked out of the bathroom, topless, and looking far too good considering she looked like a mess. When he took in her appearance he managed to hold back his laugh but she could see he was having to try hard.

"Please don't. Honestly, tonight has been a 'mare already... But I will look good in like, twenty minutes," she said, walking over to Sirius' bed and sitting on it, watching James move things around in his trunk.

"Can't you just accio it?" She asked, watching as James removed a couple of bottles.

"Nah, everything's a bit fragile, worried it would break something on the way out. I think I see it though..." he replied, before diving in to his trunk, his entire torso disappearing in to it.

Sirius pulled out a t-shirt and tugged it on before sitting next to Bess and kissing her on the cheek. "You don't look too bad, I was mainly laughing at the slippers..." he said, looking down at her feet.

Bess raised them up and wiggled her feet. "Like 'em? Got them in Diagon Alley in the summer. If I lose them they bark."

"Ah, that's funny, same thing happens when we lose Padfoot..." James said with a chuckle as he stood up, holding two bottles of the hair potion in his hands. "Here you go."

Bess jumped up and threw her arms around James before planting a kiss on his cheek and grabbing one of the bottles in his hand. "Thank you!" She called as she ran towards the door. "I'll pay you back!"

"Don't worry about it!"

"Oh, I will," Bess said, as she turned back, already halfway out the door. "This stuff is a con. Whoever invented it is a mad genius. Two drops will tame any hair? Fuck off. Two bottles more like. If they've got any kids I think I'm bank rolling their education."

With that, she left, swinging the door shut behind her as she heard Sirius begin to laugh and James say, "Well I'm not telling him..."

xXx

True to her word, 20 minutes later, Bess looked... dare she say it... goooooood (with all seven 'o's).

She had lightly curled her straightened hair so it hung in waves that she swept over her left shoulder, and her smokey eye make up was finished with a red lip. It was her staple 'going out' look, but was made infinitely better by the dress which she had borrowed from Solstice.

As Slughorn's invitation said it was a formal event, Bess had borrowed a deep red velvet long sleeved floor-length dress, with a slit which went up her left leg, stopping at her mid-thigh.

On Solstice, who was shorter and smaller than Bess, the dress was slightly baggy and way too long - she'd said it was her sisters which she'd stolen and intended to transfigure. But on Bess it fit perfectly, hugging her curves and falling to just touch the ground when she wore her heels.

It had a boat neck, which meant that it just skimmed over the scar going down Bess' right arm, but didn't show too much of it, whilst showing off her shoulders.

Due to a few brilliant spells on Lily's part, she was able to wear her bra underneath it without any of the straps showing - she hadn't thought to buy a strapless bra before coming to Hogwarts -, and Lily had also put a glamour over a couple of Bess' burn marks so for the next nine hours she didn't have to worry about anyone seeing them and asking questions.

As she slipped on her black sparkly heels - which she had charmed with a cushioning spell to make sure she could wear them all night - Lily exited the bathroom, and Bess' eyes widened.

Lily was wearing a floor length deep green fitted dress which suited her hair incredibly well. It was slightly low cut, hugged in at her waist, and skimmed straight down over her hips. There were no sleeves, so Lily was holding a matching green shrug over one arm. It reminded Bess of a more modest version of the black dress Eva Green wore in the latest adaptation of Casino Royale.

She'd curled her hair and put on more make up than Bess had seen her wear before, but it suited her down to the ground, allowing her eyes to sparkle out of her pale face.

"You look incredible," Bess said as she stood and grabbed her small bag, which contained her wand, lipstick, a small mirror, and four pain au chocolats just in case.

When they'd finally traversed the stairs downstairs, Bess opened the door to see Sirius and James standing by the portrait hole, wearing smart black dress robes. Her eyes widened and she immediately shut the door and turned back to Lily.

"Uh- what're they doing?" She asked in a whisper.

"Who?"

"James and Sirius. They're all dressed up..."

Bess had been hoping she could avoid Sirius for now - she loved how she looked, but was still embarrassed that she'd put in so much effort.

"They're our dates!" Lily said simply, before trying to push past Bess.

"What? Since when? I thought I was going with you?"

Lily sighed and rolled her eyes. "He's your boyfriend!" When Bess just continued to stare at her, Lily said, "Honestly? Since this morning. I may have mentioned to James that you were coming with me, and then he said he was going with Sirius, and... asked if I maybe wanted to team up?"

Bess' eyes widened and her mouth fell open in shock. "Is this a double date?"

"Kind of?" Lily replied, her eyebrows pulling together in apprehension, "is that weird?"

"Oh my god. No! That's fantastic!" Bess cried, throwing her arms around Lily, forgetting completely about her silly worry over what Sirius would think about her outfit.

"You sure? I just... I've spent some time with him over the past few weeks when you and Sirius have been going off and stuff, and-"

"You've realised he's not too bad?"

Lily bit her lip and nodded.

Bess squealed and jumped up and down. She was ecstatic that her happiness with Sirius had managed to bring together James and Lily over nine months early, giving them even more time together.

"Don't get too excited though, it could go disastrously!" Lily said, frowning again.

"If something happens, please try and see the funny side of it. Like when he spilt all that juice over you in fourth year and you stormed off?"

"You know about that?"

"Sirius told me. I think it was number six or something on the list of stupid stuff James has done in an effort to ask you out. But," she said, waving her hand, "that doesn't matter. What does matter, is that if that happens tonight, just laugh, and let him rectify the mistake. Remember his reaction when you spilt your drink on his white shirt?"

Lily nodded and took a deep breath. "What if he's annoying?"

"He's James. Just remember that. Not Potter, he's James. He'll be annoying, probably, but he'll also be sweet and kind and lovely."

Just as Lily was about to reply, the door opened and a second year girl almost fell over the two girls. "Merlin, sorry!" She said as she backed up, letting Bess and Lily out of the stairwell.

"Don't worry about it," Lily replied softly, blushing slightly.

Bess half-smiled with her lips closed and eyes wide, before she looked over at the door again and saw Sirius staring at her. She bit her lip and walked over, slipping her arms around his middle as he continued to just stare at her, her heels making them almost the same height.

Instead of saying anything, Sirius pulled her flush against him and slipped a hand up to cup her jaw before leaning in and capturing her lips in a slow and passionate kiss.

When he finally pulled back, Bess took a moment to come back down to earth as she felt him place a few kisses on her right shoulder. Just as he trailed his lips over her neck and almost reached her mouth again, James said, "Alright, alright, stop it you two. Party starts at eight."

Bess smiled and looked over at James, who was staring at the ceiling and sighing deeply. She made eye contact with Lily who laughed slightly and pushed James towards the Portrait Hole.

"You look... I can't even..." Sirius said, trailing off and leaning in to kiss her again.

Before he could, Lily this time, shouted, "Come on!"

Bess laughed as she stepped away and Sirius grabbed her hand, leading her out of the common room.

xXx

If she'd thought Slughorn's party would have been over the top, Bess was thoroughly unprepared. It was just as Harry had described - like stepping in to a circus tent - but this time, the colours on the ceiling were gold, silver and bronze, with green draped here and there, as if pulling the other colours together.

The room was filled with people and felt hot to Bess, who had chosen long sleeves so that she could hide her scars. She couldn't imagine how stifling it was for Sirius and James, who were both wearing full dress robes.

As they moved through the room, Bess became aware of just how many people Sirius and James knew. They were nodding, shaking hands, waving, and shouting to almost everyone they walked past, and Bess felt a little bit unnecessary.

Lily, on the other hand, didn't seem to mind at all, and was whispering to James, asking him about different people.

Finally, they came to a stop by a particularly ostentatious fountain made out of what looked like ice, but also, intriguingly, like it was on fire.

Sirius passed her a glass of mead and she smiled appreciatively before looking around the room again. They chatted and laughed for over an hour from their perch, only leaving to share a dance or two, before returning to their station.

Around ten o'clock, once they'd begun to mingle more and James had had an exciting chat with the former England Quidditch Captain, Bess heard Jasper's voice as he appeared suddenly at her side and yelled over the music, "Alright, you lot!"

"Professor Serpen!" Lily said excitedly.

"Enough off that! Tonight I'm just Jasper, Auror-extraordinaire!" He said, before taking a gulp of his mead.

"Pain in the arse more like!" Bess said, sipping her drink and looking around as if wondering who said that.

"I heard that. Be careful or I'll tell Del about your fella," Jasper replied, raising an eyebrow and nodding at Sirius, who grinned.

Bess rolled her eyes, before quoting one of her favourite films, "'Honestly, Dad. No one says fella anymore!'"

"Uh, I am five years older than you, thank you very much," Jasper replied, glaring at her playfully and pointing at her with his glass, his other hand still in his pocket.

No one would have noticed, but Bess knew what he was doing - he had his wand in his hand, ready for a fight if needed.

"Really?" Bess asked, cocking her head to the side and pursing her lips, and tapping her chin with a finger, "five years? Or is it almost six?"

Jasper narrowed his eyes at her and said, "Yeah, well at least I didn't sleep on a sofa for three days because I couldn't complete a transfiguration spell and had a furry goblet running around my room."

Bess gasped as she heard the others roar with laughter, "You said you'd never tell! Where's Delbert?"

"Why am I not surprised you're already at each other's throats?" Delbert asked as he joined the small group.

"He's telling people I'm rubbish at magic!" Bess cried, pointing at Jasper.

"Bess has a boyfriend!" Jasper replied quickly, trying to deflect.

Bess gasped again, and Jasper raised his eyebrows, suddenly finding his cup incredibly interesting. The slight smile on his face confirmed to Bess that he knew exactly what he'd just done.

"Bess?" Delbert asked quietly.

"I was going to tell you..." Bess said, trailing off, a blush rising to her cheeks as she tried not to look at any of her friends and focus only on the Auror in front of her.

"How long?" Delbert asked quietly.

Bess wasn't going to answer, but Jasper piped up and said, "at least eight weeks..."

"Whose side are you on?" Bess hissed.

Delbert nodded and took his wand out of his pocket, before draining his goblet and setting it down on the ice sculpture. "How long have I been an Auror, Jasper?"

"Over twenty years, Del," Jasper replied, smirking as Bess glared at him.

"This is ridiculous. He's kind and funny and I love him. If you hurt him..." she said, trailing off and pointing a finger at Delbert.

Delbert raised his hands to the air and said, "Who said anything about hurting the kid? This would just be a little chat, man to man. Now which one is it?"

Bess let out a frustrated noise as she looked at the ceiling, before she pointed to Sirius, who was looking between the three with an amused expression on his face.

Apart from the first time she'd spoken to Jasper in their first Defence lesson with him, she'd not been overly familiar with the man, and although she wrote to the two Aurors weekly, her relationship with them both hadn't really come up.

Delbert looked at him before the mock glare fell from his face and he turned to stare at Bess, a worried expression on his face. "Bess. What're you doing?" He whispered to her.

"What d'you mean?" She asked, trying to figure out what about Sirius was wrong.

"He is a Black," Delbert hissed to her quietly, turning them both away from the group.

"Who's in Gryffindor."

"You don't know what his family are capable of."

"Delbert... what's going on?"

Delbert looked around before pulling her towards a curtain, which he pushed aside and motioned for Bess to walk behind. She rolled her eyes and walked in to the alcove he'd revealed. Once he'd put the curtain back and sent a silencing charm towards it, he turned to her.

"Look, I have no proof, which is why I haven't said anything, and why officially no one knows who tortured you, but... I've heard rumours."

"What? What're you talking about?" Bess asked, trying to figure out who on earth he was inferring had hurt her.

"Has your boyfriend ever mentioned his family?"

Bess, who was wracking her brains trying to work out who Sirius was related to, said, "Yeah, I mean, he has a brother, and his parents are blood purists..."

"Has he talked about any of his cousins?"

"No. Why?"

"Does the name Bellatrix Lestrange mean anything to you?"

Bess nodded slowly. "Yeah, she's..." she said, trailing off as she thought about what she'd do to Hermione, and about the Lestrange family vault. "Not much about her really, I just know she's a bit of a... fanatic?"

"A fanatic who gave you that scar," he said, pointing to Bess' left arm.

Like a tidal wave, Bellatrix came back to Bess, and she gasped as the weight of knowledge bared down on her. She suddenly remembered everything - what she would do to the Longbottoms, her escape from Azkaban, Sirius...

She remembered how Sirius died. She'd never been able to properly remember it before, she'd just known that it would happen.

"Oh my god," she whispered, putting a hand to her chest and sinking to the ground.

Delbert, who thought her reaction was solely about the scar, knelt beside her and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Bess, she's his cousin."

Bess turned to look at Delbert with wide, tear filled eyes. "He's not like that," she whispered. "He's not like his family."

"How can you be sure?"

"Because I know him. He's not like them. When his brother shoved me-"

"He did what?!" Delbert asked loudly, his nostrils flaring in anger.

"Delbert, please! When his brother shoved me, Sirius went after him, and Regulus hasn't attacked me since. Sirius is not like them. He's just- he's not like them. You have to believe me. He's good."

Delbert looked sceptical, but after a few moments, he nodded solemnly. "I can't believe you yet, not until I've got the measure of him and seen if he truly deserves you, but I'll give him a chance..."

Bess nodded quickly and wrapped her arms around her middle.

"I'm... I'm so sorry I told you like that. I shouldn't've."

"Please, Delbert, don't worry. It's honestly okay. I just... I think I want to leave the party now," she said, clearly asking Delbert to leave her alone for now. "I'll write to you over break?"

Delbert nodded and stood up. "You'll be safe here over Christmas break. Just... stay out of trouble? I don't want a repeat of last year," he said with a chuckle, trying to make a joke. "Sorry, Jasper's a lot better at the joking around..."

"That's okay, and thank you," Bess replied, before leaning in to kiss him on the cheek, not mentioning that she would be at the Potters'. "You should get back," she whispered, screwing up her nose to stop the tears from falling.

"You-"

"Go. Really. I just need a moment."

"Okay," Delbert replied, before frowning at her, gently squeezing her hand, and leaving.

Bess took a moment to herself. The spell Delbert had cast on the curtain was still holding, and she thought that he might have recast it when he'd left, so she had some privacy. She took a deep breath in before her sobs overtook her and she sank to the floor again, wrapping her arms around her shins, and resting her head on her knees as she cried.

Ten minutes later, she had finally stopped crying, and pulled out her mirror from her bag to try and rectify some of the damage.

She just had to keep reminding herself that Bellatrix was nowhere near her, and that she wouldn't be the reason Sirius died this time - Bess would kill her herself if needed.

Once she'd done what she needed to do to look like she hadn't been crying, she took a deep breath and peered around the curtain.

The party was still in full swing, and she could see the back of Lily and James' heads somewhere in the corner, so she slipped out and walked as quickly and inconspicuously as possible to the door, before leaving as Slughorn greeted another guest fondly.

She slipped off her heels and began to run through the dungeons, not stopping until she reached the main entrance doors to the school, which she pulled open.

Finally, she stepped out in to the open and took a few gasping breaths before, with shaking hands, she pulled out her wand and held it securely in her hand as she began to walk barefoot towards the grounds.

As she got to the forest treeline, which she was going to follow round until she came to the lake, she heard footsteps behind her. She whirled around.

"Love?" Sirius asked, raising his hands to the air as she pointed her wand at him.

She gasped slightly as she tried not to cry again, and lowered her wand.

"Love, you're not wearing shoes..." he whispered, slowing stepping towards her.

"I- I- I-"

"Shhhh," he said, as he pulled her in to his arms and held her as she cried.

xXx

"I'm so sorry," Sirius said, once she'd told him what Delbert had told her. "Bess, if I'd have known. I would've stayed away from you, I promise. I swear to you, I had no idea."

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why would you have stayed away?" Bess asked quietly, pulling his arms closer around her, as if scared he might leave.

Once Bess had stopped crying, Sirius had transfigured the heels she'd been holding in her hands in to normal shoes, and taken her to the beach.

They were now sat with her between his legs, his head next to hers, both staring at the calm water in front of them.

"Because it was my family who did this to you," he whispered.

"No. Your family are the Potters. And anyway, if you went around apologising for everything your birth family did, I don't think you'd have time to do anything else..."

She felt Sirius take a deep breath before he said, "Bess, she's not just someone I'm related to... she's my cousin Bella. She's... we grew up together. I- I last saw her this summer. It's not... she's not just someone..."

"I know," Bess said, looking down. She knew this summer would be the last time he saw Bellatrix until the deranged witch was brought in to Azkaban for the torture of Frank and Alice Longbottom. "But you would never do this to someone."

She felt his arms tighten around her as he dropped his face to the crook of her neck.

They sat like that for a while, as thoughts swirled around Bess' mind. She could only think of one thing with clarity - she didn't want to feel this numbness anymore.

Sirius raised his head and whispered into her ear, "I love you, Bess. I love you."

Bess gasped in a breath and turned to look over her shoulder at him. "Sirius...?"

"Yes, love?" He whispered back, gently wiping away a tear from her cheek.

"Make love to me?" She whispered.

"What?" He asked, his eyebrows pulling together. "How? Bess. I love you more than anything-"

He was cut off as Bess kissed him hard, putting all of her feelings in to the kiss. She turned in his arms and wrapped hers around his shoulders as she straddled his hips.

Sirius pulled away and said, "Bess, love, what're you doing?"

"I don't want to think. I don't want to feel this pain anymore. I just want you," she said, staring in to his eyes before kissing him again.

She was glad Sirius had set up a fire around them, as otherwise she would have been freezing.

She pushed him backwards and began to undo the buttons of his shirt.

He pulled her hands away and broke their kiss as he rolled them over so he was on top of her.

He stared down at her and said, "Bess, love, you're not thinking."

"I am. I've thought about this for weeks. I've thought about you for weeks. I just- I know it's not- but... wait... do you want me?" She asked, gulping slightly.

"Merlin. Yes." Sirius said, nodding, before frowning and saying, "but Bess..."

Bess shook her head quickly and leant up to kiss him slowly again. As she pulled away, she asked, "Please?"

"I can't. You're not thinking properly. You might regret it tomorrow, and I don't want any part of you to."

"I won't. Please, Sirius, I won't. I won't regret any moment I share with you," Bess said, staring up at him with pleading eyes.

She didn't want to see an older version of him falling through the veil whenever she closed her eyes, she just wanted him to be with her in that moment.

Sirius looked hesitant for a moment, and asked, "Are you sure? One hundred per cent sure?"

Bess nodded and searched his eyes as she asked, "Is this okay with you?"

He nodded and leant in slightly, before Bess stopped him and said, "Wait. I'm sorry. This isn't fair, I can't just make you do this."

"Bess, I've been thinking about you for months. Not just weeks. You're not my first. I've done this before, so don't worry about that at all. If you're completely sure that this is what you want, then I'm going to take it slow, okay?"

Bess nodded and said, "I've done this before as well."

Sirius bit his lip and said, "Since January?"

Bess shook her head. "No, uh- before."

Sirius nodded before saying again, "We'll take it slow. You might not have as much experience as me..."

Bess knew what he was saying - she might not be as experienced in this world. She took a deep breath.

"Are you sure?" She asked him quietly.

"If you're sure, I'm sure," he whispered back.

Bess nodded and he leant down and kissed her soundly.

xXx

So... this is a 'T' so please let me know if I need to cut any of that bit out! I think it's okay, but just want to make sure I stick to the rating! (FYI, Sirius will be conjuring up a blanket, but I will not be writing that whole scene, so thought I'd add it to my Author's Note that it's not too sandy!). I think I've watched too much Bridgerton...

And thanks again to everyone reviewing, reading, following and favouriting! Hope you liked it!